Concentrator.



C. G. HUBBARD.

GONGENTRATOR.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 23, 1 909.

Patented Feb. 24, 191% 2 SEEETB-BHEET l.

P @ya @mili C. G. HUBBARD.

GONGENTRATOR.

APPLIUATION FILED AUG. 23, 1909. 1,088A23- Petentea Fe1e..2e,191eL 2 SHEETS-BHEET 2.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEErcE. CHARLES Gr. I-IUBBARD, OF SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, A-SSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF '10 EALPH DE LECAIRE FOSTER, OF SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA.

CONCENTRATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.l

Patented Feb. 24, 1914.

following is a specification.

Thisconcentrator is designed to make separation between comminuted materials of different specific gravities and is adapted for various uses, as forconcentrating mlni erals, such as gold, silver, lead, etc.; and

for recovering gold and separating the same from magnetic iron sands and other materials in sea-shore and placer mines or in dredging mines. V

It is also applicable for the separation of precious stones from surrounding and lighter stones, wherever they may occur in loose deposits.

It may also be used in other arts and manufactures, as in sugar making, etc., where it is desired to maintain circulation of liquids which carry solids.

The invention as defined in the subjoined specification and claims is applicable 1n various forms and is not restricted to any specific form in which it may be/applied.

The accompanying drawings illust-rate the invention.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section on line aal-m1, Fig. 2 of a. port-ion of a concentrator embodying this invention. A unit and parts of two `other units are shown. rlhe tip of one of the conveyer Scrapers or buckets is shown. Fig. 2 is a plan of t-he portion of the concentrator shown in Fig. 1. rllhe sprocket chains and wheels for driving the screws tion of a concentrator devoid of the jig.

The concentrator comprises a'pluralitypf sluice compartments 1, each having two side walls 2, a front wall 3 and a rearwardly ascending sloping floor 4; the rear end of the esA floor of one compartment terminating at the front end wall of the following compartment and so on, and the number of compartments lbeing determined by the nat-ure of the work for which the concentrator is designed. The

walls 2 may be common to all t e sluice compartments of the concentrator and may extend above'the level of the rear ends of the floorstdsuch height as to retain a depth of liquid over all parts of said floors. The slope of the floor and the angle between the same and the front end walls of the compartment may be determined by the work to be performed and by the slant thatis to be given to the sluice-way.`

In each of the sluice compartments, and in the angle between the'front wall and the sloping iioor thereof, there are provided conveyer means directed toward each other from opposite sides of the compartment. In the form shown said conveyer means are revolving elements in the form of reverse Archimedean screws 5, 5, both of which are mounted on a common rotary7 shaft 6, and rotate therewith to convey the material toward the medial line of the compartment.

Sprocket wheels 7 are fixed to the ends of the shafts 6 to rotate the -sa-lne, and between the right and left Archimedean screws in each compartment, there may be a bearing 8 to support the screw shaft 6. It is thus seen that in operation with the compartments filled with liquid carrying the comminuted material, that. when the screws are rotated, the liquid-.in'each compartment will be causedto move toward the middle of the compartment at the front deep end thereof by reason of the rotation of the screws, and that in` consequence of this ac.

tion, the surface of the flowing material at the mid-width of the compartment will be higher at the front end than will be the surface of such material. at the sides of said compartment at such end, and the tendency of the material is to circulate in two whirls advancing toward the higher portion of the Hoor along the medial line of the compartment, and having a reverse movement at the sides.

Above the sluice-way or ladder 9 composed of a line of sluice compartments such as above described, an endless belt 10 having conveyer buckets, blades or Scrapers 11, is arranged for the purpose of moving the surface material rearwardly' along the sluices. The belt is so arranged over pulleys 12, 13, that the Scrapers gather the surface of the material and vmove the same toward the upper end of the sloping floor. The

widthy of the scrapers or buckets may be somewhat less than the width of the compartment. Said revolving element stirs up the material and allows the heavier particles thereof to sink to the floor while the higher earth and gravel and the like is carried onward. As the operation proceeds the lighter .l material will be drawn by the buckets or scrapers into the next compartment, and so on, while the heavier material will accumulate at the deep front end of the compartment.

The conveyer blades or buckets 11 may be operated to convey material into the sluice or ladder as well as to move it along the same, and the materialmay be so fed as to fill the sluice with the metal bearing earth, clay, sand or gravel, and the concentrates not caught by one compartment will fall into the next and so on until only the nonmetallic debris o'r other refuse is finally discharged.

The. portion of the compartment between the conveyer at one end of said compartment' and the wall at the other end of the compartment constitutes a separator for separating the heavier from the lighter substances and said separator may be provided with any suitable separating means to facilitate separation.

The compartments may or may not be fitted with amalgamating plates conforming to the floor or may or may not be charged with quicksilver as the operator may determine.

It is understood that the apparatus may be operated Without the conveyer buckets 11 by causing a stream of water to flow in the sluiceway and that the ladder or sluiceway may he set level, or aslant with either end higher than the other, and that all changes and alterations of positions and directions of operation may be made without.

departing from the broad idea of means involved in this invention.

It is understood that the means for driving the. conveyer buckets or Scrapers may be of any approved form as a belt, cables, sprocket chains or the like, and that the conveyer screws may be connected and driven by any approved form of sprocket chains or the like that will serve the purpose. The belt 10 shown, may be supported by rollers 14 on tracks 15 formed'by the sides of t-he sluice-way.

The sloping floors of the compartments may be movable along the compartments forming reciprocating jiggers 41 and may be provided with jigging riftles 16 in the form of notches having straight plain vertical front walls 17 and plain rearwardly and upwardly sloping floors 18. Means are also provided for reciprocating the jiggers 41. For this purpose a lug 19 at the middle of the jigger is provided with a vertical way for an eccentric 20 on a shaft 21 that is mounted in bearings 22 at the sides of the compartment.

The eccentric shafts 21 are provided with sprocket wheels 23 driven by sprocket chains 24 to rotate t-he shaft and at each revolution the jigger will be reciprocated along the compartment and the speed thereof may be varied so as to reciprocate the jigger slowly or rapidly as found advisable for the work in hand.

The sluice may be constructed of any suitable material, and magy comprise a bottom 25 secured to two si es 2, which sides form the support for the track l5 and the rollers 14. To said bottom 25 are bolted angle-iron feet 26 that extend across the entire width of the box. To these feet are detachably fastened the end .Walls 3, the same being stepped into the feet 2G and fastened by bolts 27. The upper edges of the walls 3 are provided with ledges 28 and the upper ends of the jiggers 41 are provided withianges 29 which fit around the ledges 28,

thereby forming slip-joints that will exclude sand and prevent itfrom working down' under the jigger 41. In the top of the Walls 3 a race-Way 30 is provided for anti-friction bearings 32 which may be rollers or balls,

' and a plane face of the jigger 41 rests upon said anti-friction bearing, thus providing for easy movement of the jigger at the upper end. Bearings 34, 35, may be provided in the bottom 25 to support-'the lower end of the jigger 41. In addition to this, antifriction bearings 36 at the sides of the sluice are provided in sloping ways 37 that extend aslant in the sides of the jigger to carry the lower end of the jigger as the jigger is moved rearwardly.

By means of the feet 26 for the walls 3 said walls may be detached andv replaced again as desired.

The jigger riflle notches 16 may be provided .with amalgamating plates 38' so that any precious materials that may be amalgamated can be recovered thereon. Also charges of quicksilver 39 may be supplied to said notches, the same being retainedtherein by the end walls 40.

In practice the cam shafts will be connected at oneside of the sluice by sprocket wheels and chains running from cam shaft to cam shaft, and the screws will be connected together at the other sideY of the sluice by sprocket wheels and chains running from screw shaft to screw shaft so that the speed at which the screws are Arotated may be varied without interfering with the speed at which the cam shafts are operated.

In practical operation where black sandsY are present in large quant'lties the screws may be run at a speed of say from fifty to one hundred and twenty revolutions per minute, more or less, thus to prevent vthe black sands from packing.

'16 mounted together in the compartments 1,

, it is clear that the material in the compartment will be driven toward the center, thence across the riies, and thence toward the sides and downward across the riiiies againin a circular manner as indicated by the large arrows in Fig. 2 of the drawings, the lighter material being gradually forced Vto nthe top and thence carried by the Scrapers 11 over into another compartment while thev heavier material revolves around and around above the rittles until it iinally comes into contact with the quicksilver 39.

l claim l. A concentrator comprising a compartment, loppositely arranged conveyer means directed toward each other from opposite sides of the compartment at the front end of the compartment to move material from both sides of the compartment toward the medial line thereof, and a separator between the conveyer means and the rear end of the compartment, said separator extending laterally beyond the medial line and being adapted to receive material from and to return materia-l to the conveyer means.

2. A concentrator comprising a compartment; oppositely arranged conveyer means directed toward each other from opposite sides of the compartment at the front end of the compartmentJ Cto move material from both sides of the compartment toward the medial line thereof, means to move suchmaterial along such medial line, and a separator between the conveyer means and the rear end of the compartment, said separator extending laterally beyond the medial line and being adapted to receive material from and to return material to the conveyer means.

3. A concentrator comprising a compartment that is'deeper at one end than the other, oppositely arranged conveyer means directed toward each other from opposite sides of the compartment at the deeper front end of the compartment to move material from both sides of the compartment toward the medial line thereof, means to move such material along such medial line, and a separator between the conveyer means and the rear end of the compartment, said separator extending laterally beyond the medial line and being adapted to receive material from and to return material to the conveyer means. Y'

4. A concentrator comprising a compartment, oppositely 4arranged conveyer means directed toward each other from opposite sides of the compartment at the front end of the compartment to move material from both sides of the compartment toward the medial line thereof, the Hoor of said compartment sloping upwardly from such end, and separating means between the conveyer means and the rear end of the comparty ment, said separator extending laterally beyond the medial line and being adapted to receive material from and to return material to the conveyer means.

5. A concentrator comprising a compartment; oppositely arranged conveyer means directed toward each other from opposite sides of and at the .front end of the compart.

ment to move material from both sides of the compartment toward the medial line thereof, the floor of said compartment sloping upwardly from such end; means to move such material along such medial line, and separating means between the conveyer means and the rear end of the compart. ment, said separator extending laterally beyond the medial line and being adapted to receive material from and to return material to the conveyer means. a

6. A concentrator comprising a flume compartment that is deeper at the front end than the rear end,-oppositely arranged conveyer means directed toward each other.

from opposite sides of the compartment at the deeper end of the compartment to move Vmaterial from both sides of the compartment toward the medial line thereof, the floor of said compartment sloping upwardly from such end; means to move such material along such medial line, and separating means between the conveyer means and the rear end of the compartment, said separator extending laterally beyond the medial line and being adapted to receive material from and to return material to the conveyer mea-ns. y

7. A concentrato-r comprising a iume compartment the floor of which slopes along the compartment, right and 'left conveyer screws extending coaXially of each other transversely of and at the front end of the compartment to convey material from both sides of the compartment toward the medial line thereof, means to revolve the screws, and separating means between the conveyer means and the rear end of the compartment, said separator extending laterally beyond the medial line and being adapted to 'receive material from and to return material to the conveyer means. l

8. A `concentrator comprising a compartment, the floor of which slopes along the compartment, right and left conveyer screws extending transversely of the compartment to convey material from both sides of the compartment toward the medialline thereof, means movable along the medial line of the compartment to give direction to the flow of the material along said medial line, means to revolve the screws, and a separator between the conveyer screws and the other end of the compartment, said separator extending laterally beyond the medial line and beirig adapted to return the material to said conveyer screws.

9. A concentrator comprising a compart# meiv, the floor of which slopes along the t compartment and is provided with a sepacompartment,

material from both rating surface extending laterally beyond the medial line, right and left conveyer screws extending transversely of the compartment to convey material from both sides of the compartment toward the medial lines thereof, means to revolve the lscrews and means above the level of the screws to move the surface material toward the higher portion of the loor.

l0. A concentrator comprising a compartment, the floor of which slopes along the and comprises a slant-ing notched jigger having a separating surface extending laterally beyond the medial line, right and left conveyer screws extending transversely of the .compartment to convey sides of the compartmen toward the medial line thereof, means to revolve the screws; means to reciprocate the -jigger and means above the level of said jigger to move the the higher portion of the Hoor.

ll. In a concentrator, a compartment, the floor of which slopes along the compartment and consists of a jigger constituting separating means extending laterally beyond the medial line movable along the compartment, means to reciprocate the jigger along the floor, right and left conveyer screws` extendsurface material toward Vey material toward the medial line thereof, and means to revolve th'e screws.

l2. In a concentrator, a. compartment, the Hoor of which slopes along the compartment and consists of a jigger constitutingseparating means extending laterally beyond the medial line, ment, means to reciprocate the jigger along the floor, right and leftconveyer screws extending' transversely of the compartment to convey material toward the medial line thereof, means to revolve the screws, and mea-ns movable along compartment to the material along said medial line. l

13. In a concentratorya compartment-having parallel side walls, a vertical front wall at right angles thereto, a bottom extending from side to side and slantingupward rearwardly at an acute angle to the front wall and constituting the rear Wall of the compartment, media-l conveying means connected therewith; transverse conveyer means in the acute angle of the bottom and the front wall adapted-to move the material from both' sides to the medial conveying means, and separating means between the conveyer means and the front wall.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 12th day of August, 1909.

CHA-S. G. HUBBARD.

In presence of- JAMES R. TowNsEND, L. BELLE RICE.

movable along the compartthe medial line of thek give direction to the flow of Ving transversely of the compartment to con- Y l 

